The Student Room Group

Best degree for getting into Investment banking?

Hi, I’m a sixth form (year 12) student stuck between two course choices for uni. I think I want to get into into investment banking and hopefully into M&A later on. Im wondering if a Chemistry with Management degree (From KCL, UCL, Bath) would be less beneficial than a business and accounting degree (or something similar) from Nottingham, KCL etc. I’ve heard that a STEM degree is good to have because it is different than what lots of other applicants will be applying with. I don’t do maths A level so my choices in Finance degrees are limited to universities which don’t have a requirement for A level maths. I know that a business related degree is probably the most direct course choice for getting into IB but I want to know what the advantages and drawbacks of choosing either would be. If anyone could advise me or offer their opinions on what the best choice would be I would really appreciate it. Thanks!

Reply 1

Original post
by C07
Hi, I’m a sixth form (year 12) student stuck between two course choices for uni. I think I want to get into into investment banking and hopefully into M&A later on. Im wondering if a Chemistry with Management degree (From KCL, UCL, Bath) would be less beneficial than a business and accounting degree (or something similar) from Nottingham, KCL etc. I’ve heard that a STEM degree is good to have because it is different than what lots of other applicants will be applying with. I don’t do maths A level so my choices in Finance degrees are limited to universities which don’t have a requirement for A level maths. I know that a business related degree is probably the most direct course choice for getting into IB but I want to know what the advantages and drawbacks of choosing either would be. If anyone could advise me or offer their opinions on what the best choice would be I would really appreciate it. Thanks!


The basic entry into IB is through an econ degree at a target school, but it’s generally known that there’s no specific degree required for it. It is important that you get internships etc however so that you stand out I guess.

Reply 2

I read somewhere that about 90% of graduates that go into investment banking come from Oxford, Cambridge, LSE, Imperial, UCL and Warwick. If I was you I would try to get into one of these Universities in order to boost your chances of getting into IB.

Quick Reply

How The Student Room is moderated

To keep The Student Room safe for everyone, we moderate posts that are added to the site.